Journalism: What role does the media still have as a fourth power in the state?
Between the Lines

Anne Renzenbrink is a Press Officer with Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in Berlin, Germany. While some spectacular journalism is being done in the Covid-19 pandemic by some, ‘heroes’ of information but largely, trust in the media has hit a new low in recent times and attacks on journalists have risen exponentially.

Jyoti covered the Covid-19 pandemic extensively, often juggling between heart-wrenching human interest stories and hard news breaking stories. For her, the pandemic broke all barriers of access as journalism became completely digital in a way that was not seen before.

Having reported from Africa and Europe, journalist Julia Amberger talks about how reporting on Covid-19 coverage has been different from the two continents. While data driven journalism and medical reporting on Covid-19 have been good, the social element and impact of Covid-19 were missing from the media. 

Journalism with a human touch has become more relevant than ever before. Even though the pandemic makes it difficult to spend time with subjects and people in remote areas, their stories need to be told.

Known for his quick ability to gather information and flash news breaks, Mustafa believes that the pandemic was an opportunity to inform people and carry out the public service function of journalism.

Lata reported extensively on the Covid-19 pandemic, covering a range of issues from lack of hospital beds to lack of life-saving drugs, and the creation of health care facilities on a war footing.

Over the past 25 years, the Indian media market - largely unnoticed by the rest of the world - has changed dramatically thanks to digitalisation, economic boom and the needs of a new urban middle class.

Television in India is loud and vibrant, yet the colourful packaging often hides a lack of objectivity and independence.

Perrie Subramaniam about the tectonic shift in the role and value of a journalist in India.

Even as the industry is growing quickly, journalists find themselves in a precarious situation.

We learn about people from faraway places and their culture primarily from the media. It particularly shapes our image of places we have not been to. For the majority of Germans, India is one such place. So how is the country represented in German media? In this podcast, journalists talk about the role of stereotypes in the news.

India has one of the largest media markets in the world with unique online newsrooms. But it’s high time legacy media started thinking about digital innovation and integrations.

Germans often know little about India, and Indians usually know little about Germany. An exchange programme for journalists initiated by the Robert Bosch Foundation has been successfully addressing this shortcoming for five years. The project, however, has had mixed results.

Literacy level has little to do with how good a reporter you make. Find out how the citizen journalism platform ‘Khabar Lahariya’ is becoming a media source to connect rural India’s’ Bundelkhand region.

Fake news is a global menace, but incidents of violence and lynching triggered by fake news and rumours are common on WhatsApp in India, one of the biggest messaging platforms. But it is the people who will have to self-regulate and stop the spread of fake news.

Reports, pictures, videos – fake news can take different forms and is hard to refute. Some websites have therefore dedicated themselves to checking questionable information and media.

Some journalistic reporting appeals to emotions and often obscures the facts as a result. But journalists can also reveal what went through their minds whilst investigating a story, thereby encouraging readers to think for themselves.
 

Who decides whether a news is worth publishing? For many years the answer was: professional editors. That time is over, but there are signs of a renaissance.

Some say, “Fake news is toxic for democracy!” Others say, “Fake news is a symptom, but not the real problem.” Now wait just a moment: What is fake news anyway? And why is it causing so much fuss?